by Stewart Mason
Mystifyingly taking their name from a recently popular chick lit bestseller that was made into a blockbuster movie -- because, apparently, nothing says punk rock like Meryl Streep -- the Devil Wears Prada is easily one of the most bizarrely named bands of their time. Since the group is a Christian metalcore act from Dayton, OH, one assumes that the band name was chosen not because the sextet is a foe of former Vogue editor Anna Wintour, but metaphorically, as in "the devil is a deceptively appealing figure." Or something. Anyway, the Devil Wears Prada formed in 2005, consisting of singer and lyricist Mike Hranica (who handles the death growl vocals), guitarist and vocalist Jeremy DePoyster (who does the clean vocals), guitarist Chris Rubey, bassist Ziggy "Trick Daddy" Jerome, keyboardist James Baney, and drummer Daniel Williams. This lineup recorded the 2005 EP Patterns of a Horizon, which was self-released with individual hand-painted covers. Signing to Victory Records' positive-themed subsidiary Rise Records and replacing Jerome with new bassist Andy Trick, the Devil Wears Prada released Dear Love: A Beautiful Discord, in the summer of 2006. After selling more than 30,000 units of their debut, the band went back to the studio and began plugging away on 2007's Plagues. Hranica and Rubey also have an experimental grindcore side project band called xGUMBYx.